Saucy Beef and Broccoli

Beef and broccoli is a wonderfully flavorful Chinese-style stir-fry that you can put on the table in 30 minutes!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Chinese

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 15

Total Time 30

Servings servings

Calories 320kcal

In a small bowl, whisk together the reduced-sodium soy sauce, honey, cornstarch, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
Microwave the broccoli florets: Place them in a large, microwave-safe bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of water. Cover and microwave on high for about 3 minutes. They should still be crisp at this point. Drain into a colander and set aside.
In a large, deep skillet or wok, heat the avocado oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until tender, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
Add the beef strips to the skillet. Stir-fry them for 2-3 minutes, just until the beef is no longer raw. It should still be pink at this point. If there's a lot of liquid in the skillet, drain it before adding the sauce.
Whisk the soy sauce mixture one more time and add it to the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium and stir-fry until the sauce thickens, about 2 minutes. Turn the heat off and stir in the broccoli.
Transfer the stir-fry to a serving dish. Drizzle it with sesame oil and sprinkle it with sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

When you first add the beef strips to the pan, sauté them briefly. Two minutes is usually enough. Your goal is simply to cook them so that they're no longer raw. You don't want them well done at this point. They will continue cooking after you add the sauce.
When you quickly cook top sirloin, it shouldn't become tough. But if you want your beef to be very tender, marinate it for two hours in a marinade that contains 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar and 2 tablespoons of soy sauce. The vinegar will tenderize the beef by breaking the meat fibers.
To lower the carb count, use a sugar-free sweetener and replace the cornstarch with a low-carb thickener such as konjac (follow the conversion suggested by the manufacturer). With these modifications, each serving should have approximately 296 calories, 9 grams of carbs, and 3 grams of fiber.
You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them covered in the microwave at 50% power. You can also freeze the cooled leftovers in a freezer-safe container for up to three months.